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Iowa State University Athletics
Cyclones Gear Up for 49th Annual Midlands Championships
12.27.2011 | Men's Wrestling
AMES, Iowa - The No. 15 Iowa State wrestling team travels to Evanston, Ill., for the 2011 Midlands Championships at Northwestern University. The first session begins 9:30 a.m. CST on Thursday, with the final session taking place at 7 p.m. Friday.
Two Iowa State wrestlers are top contenders for the 49th annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships. Chris Spangler has the No. 1 seed in the pre-tournament rankings at 174 pounds, while Andrew Sorenson is slotted in fourth at 165 pounds.
Spangler is fresh off an upset over third-ranked Dorian Henderson of Missouri and is ranked sixth in the country by Intermat. The Naperville, Ill., native returns to his home state for the Midlands Championships in hopes of continuing his win streak. The redshirt junior is 5-1 this season and was recently named the Big 12's Wrestler of the Week Dec. 19.
"Midlands is an opportunity for Chris to win a historic tournament he grew up watching," Iowa State head coach Kevin Jackson said. "If he wins the wrestling community will know Chris is a legitimate threat to win the NCAA title."
At 165 pounds, Cyclone captain Sorenson is ranked fourth nationally and has a 12-0 record this season. Sorenson enters the tournament after posting a major decision over then-No. 12 Zach Toal on the road against Missouri.
"This is a big tournament for Andrew," Jackson said. "His preparation has really paid off. The only days he took off during break were Christmas Eve and Christmas. He may have the opportunity to wrestle the second-ranked wrestler in the country."
Redshirt sophomore Boaz Beard is fourth on the pre-tournament contenders list, but will not compete at Midlands to ensure he is 100-percent healthy for the second half of the season. Final seeds will be announced Wednesday night.
Tickets for the 2011 Midlands Championships held at Welsh-Ryan Arena are still available at www.nusports.com. All-Session general admission tickets are $38 for adults and $32 for students. Single-session tickets are also available.
Who: No. 15 Iowa State wrestling team at 49th Annual Midlands Championships
Where: Evanston, Ill. - Welsh-Ryan Arena
When: Thur. - Fri., Dec. 29-30, 2011
Radio: Takedown Radio
TV: Finals will air on Big Ten Network (same day delay 9:30 p.m. CT Dec. 30)
Live Updates: Updates on Cyclone matches will be published at the following link throughout the tournament: http://www.cyclones.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10700&ATCLID=205352526
Twitter Updates: Follow "CycloneWR" Dec. 29 & 30 for tournament updates.
2011 Midlands Championships Schedule (approximation)
Thursday, Dec. 29
Session I: 9:30 a.m.
Session II: 7 p.m. (Championship and consolation matches)
Friday, Dec. 30
Session III: Noon (Semifinals, consolation rounds, 7th place matches)
Session IV: 7 p.m. (1st, 3rd and 5th place matches)
Cyclone Notebook
-The Cyclones boast a line-up that includes four wrestlers rated in the top 20 of their respective weight classes.
-Sorenson is the highest-ranked wrestler for the Cyclones and leads the team in victories with 12.
-Iowa State is 0-8 in dual competition this year.
-13 Iowa Staters will be competing at the 2011 Midlands Championships.
Iowa State at Midlands Championships
-Last season three-time All-American Jon Reader captured the 174-pound title with a 9-4 decision over Central Michigan's Ben Bennett.
-In the 141-pound third-place championships, Iowa State's Chris Drouin fell to third-ranked Tyler Nauman of Pittsburgh.
-Returning for the Cyclones this season, Chris Spangler advanced to the 165-pound fifth-place championship of the tournament, but was forced to forfeit for medical reasons.
-Four Iowa Staters advanced to the quarterfinals at the 2010 Midlands Championships.
Players Mentioned
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